Carton-blank-forming machine.



E. M. HAWKINS.

CARTON BLANK FORMING MAcHlNE.

APPUCATION lLklJ IANy 15, 1912.

Patented June 13, 1916.

14 SHEETSwSHEET I.

/NI/ENTH ATTORNEY NMX WIT/1158858 E. M. HAWKINS.

cARToN BLANK FORMING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED IAN 15, |912.

Patented June 13, 1916.

14 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

INVENTOR E. M. HAWKINS.

CARTON BLANK FORMING MACHINE.

APPLHLAYION HLM) IAN-15,1912

lzltvniwl .llllw 13, 19W.

14 SHELTS SHEET 3.

E. M. HAWKINS. CARTON BLANK FORMxNG MACHaNt.

/wvucmmn mw 1A x5, lssz. 1 187,144. lzltvntvdJmw 1d, 1916. g x4SHEETSHSHEEM.

N vx/Enron MN. w

ATTORNEY E. M. HAwKlNs.

CARTON BLANK FORMING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED IAN. I5, 1912. 141873144, Patented J une 13, 1916. vI4 SHITS-SHEET 5.

WITNESSES:

E` M. HAWKINS CARTON BLANK FORMING MACHINE.

APPUCAYION FILED lAN.l5.1912.

Patented June 13, 1916.

I4 SHEETS-SHEET 6- "1"?" VENTOR E. M. HAWKINS. CARTON BLANK foN'NlNGMACHINE.

APPLICAYION FILED 1AN.15. 1912.

Patented June 131, 1916.

INVENTOR ATTURNEY H SHEETS-SHEET I.

E. M. HAWKINS.

CARTON BLANK FORMlNG MACHINE.

APPLxcAUoN mw JAN. l5, |912.

v 1,187,144. PatentedJune13,1916.

I4 SHEETS--SHEET 8.

wlmfsfs.- e /wfuron w/ imag, www d.Lm

L Nt. HMVKNS,

@Amun BLANK Hmmm MACHIN..

AIPUCAION Mii!) MN, 1.5, i312.

WITNESSES:

. HAWKNS.

fr.. M

BLA

i" MEN MACH MON HLLRI 1ML l5. 39!

APPICA 'mf-,mm1 Jun@ 13, 1916.

14 SHEETSY SHEET I..

ATTORNEY E. M. HAWKINS.

CARTON BLANK FORMING MACHINE.

APPLICAUON mw 1AN.15, 1912.

Patfnted Junv 13, 19H3.

l4 SHEETSSHEEY i3.

E M. HAWKINS. CARTON BLANK FORMING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED IAN. l5. 1912. l

Patented June 13, 1916.

l if r/////,0///,7///

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

EDGAR M. HAWKINS, OF ROCHESTER, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO M. D; KNOWLTONCOMPANY, F ROCHESTER, NEW YORK, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

CARTON-BLANK-FDRMING MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application led January 15, 1912. Serial No. 671,176.

' To all 'whom it may concern State of New York, have invented certainnew and useful Improvements in Carton- Blank-Forming Machines, of winchthe following is a specification,

' tendency to either stand upright or else told My invention relates toa machine for making cartons of that type in which the carton blanks areboth creased and slotted on certain predetermined lines to permit oftheir being bent or broken up7 into complete Cartons of desired form andsize; the crease being made to determine the bending lines of the blanksand facilitate the blanks being bent up into carton form on those lines,and the slots being made to provide the end flaps or sections which areadapted to be folded upon each other to form the ends of the bent up orcompleted cartons.

The main object of my invention is to provide a simple and practicalmachine that will be operative to produce a complete carton. blank ofthe type referred to, that is, a blank creased, slotted and otherwiseprepared to be set up into carton or box form.

Heretofore, so far as l am aware, it has been the usual custom to creasethe blanks at all of the several bending or corner lines thereof with acrease of uniform size or depth. lt has been found in practice, however,that a size of crease which is sufiicient t0 permit of thc ready bendingof the blanks on those lilfes where the blanks are to be bent only inone direction, as at the side and bottom corners of the carton, is notsufficient on those lines between the side sections and the end-aps orsections at the filling-end of the carton to give the most satisfactoryor desired results, and for this reason, viz., with only a size or depthof crease between the side sections and end-flaps that is sutilcient atthe bending lines between the adjoining side sections, the end-flapshave a inwardly upon each other and so obstruct the filling-oliening ofthe carton as to be a source of serious trouble and delay to the packer,this being particularly true in those cases where the carton is made ofstili" ard relatively non-flexible material, which cannot be bent orturned backward to any om siderablc extent without breakin g or so sepaYrating the fiber of the same as o either se riously damage the cartonor-destroy the same. Because of these objections, resulting from thelack of ilexibility of the carton material at the joint between the sideand end sections, it has been a further and important object of myinvention to provide an improved creasing means for the blank wherebysaid objections will be avoided, the creasing means employed by me forsuch purpose being operative to provide the.

blank on the bending lines between its side and end sections with largeror deeper creases than on the bending lines between its side sections;the forming of these larger or deeper creases operating to so separateand loosen up the fiber of the carton material as to furnish asufiiciently flexible joint whereby the end sections or flaps may bereadily folded outwardly or inwardly as may be required withoutliability of breaking or otherwise injuring the carton. Preferably thesecreases areformed by means operative to gradually enlarge the creases bysuccessive creasing operations so as not to materially weaken the cartonmaterial on the creased lines.

A machine embodying my invention includes blank slotting and creasingdevices, the creasing devices preferably comprising two main sets, oneadapted foL forming a crease at the bending lines between the side wallsof the carton, and the other adapted for forming a larger or deepercrease at the bending .lines between the side walls and the movable endflaps or sections for the purpose hereinbet'ore referred to. Theseslotting and creasing devices will also each preferably comprise twomembers, one a stationary member and the other a movable member, thestationary members of both the slotting and creasing devices beingmounted on a` normally stationary support or frame and the movablemembers being all mountedl on a reciprocatory head or frame for movementin unison to aud from position for cooperation with the stationarymembers. In mimbimition with these slotting and creasing devices meansare also provided for feeding the blanks through the machine inoperative relation to said devices to be acted upon by them, the feedingmovement of the blanks preferably being intermittent whereby the blankswill be rendered stationary while being acted upon by the Slotting andreir-ting devices.

Patented June 13, 1916. A

crossfsection the upper and lower members of two different sets ofcreasing devices and also showing their cooperation in successivelyacting upon an interposed blank to provide the same with an enlarged ordeepened crease. Fig. 2G represents a slotted and creased carton blankas reduced by a machine of my invention. Yig. 27 is a perspective viewof a carton made up of a blank as shown in Fig. 25. Figs. 28 and Q9 aredetail views to be hereinafter referred to.

Before proceeding with a detailed de scription of the machine. l willfirst describe the formation of the carton or container blank producedby it. In the formation of these blanks, it will of course beunderstood. that the spacing of the slots and creases will be variedaccording to the size and shape of the cartons to be made. In. thepresent case, a blank is shown in Fig. 2G properly creased and slottedfor the production of a rectangular carton as shown in Fig. 27, the saidblank being formed with a series of creases (L1, a?, (1,3, and a4, atthe corner or bending lines between the side wall sections or panels Il;a series of slots c1, c2, c3, and c4, at'its opposite longitudinal edgesand in line with said creases to form the end wall sections or liaps al;and a series of creases el, c2, e, and c, arranged in linessubstantially intersecting the said slots at their inner ends and inposi tion at the bending lines between the said side and end wallsections. These latter creases, as liereinbefore referred to, arepreferably so formed as to provide a flexible joint between the sidewall sections and the end fiaps permitting of the latter being folded,first downward against the oatside ofthe carton as shown inA Fig. :27,sg as to be out of the way of the packer in fillingr the carton. andthen inwardly to close the carton, after the filling or packingoperation has been completed. When the carton blankv is set up, itsopposite ends f-f may be secured together by any suitable means as, forinstance, by an adhesively applied stay-strip of suitable material. Inthe present case, however, the blank is shown as being formed at one endwith a short extension gl, which l term the securing flap, which isadapted to be glued or riveted to the adjoining wall section as a meansof securing said sections together.

To now describe the machine, the main frame thereof, which may be of anydesired form or construction suitable for the purpose, is here shown ascomprising a substantially rectangular horizontally-arranged casting 1which is of skeleton form and supported in a raised position from thedoor by legs 2 (See Figs. l to 4 inclusive). Mounted upon, this frameare the lower members of the slotting and creasing devices to behereinafter-described in detail. Above this main frame 1 is located thereciprocatory head or frame 3, which carries the movable members of theslotting and creasing devices, the same being here shown as similar inform and construction to the lower frame l. This upper frame 3 issupported at opposite sides and vertically reciprocated, by means ofeccentric rods 4 which connect nt their upper ends with the oppositeends of tivo shafts 5, mounted in said frame 3, and at their lower endsconnect with eccentrics 6 on shafts 7 and 8 journaled in the lowerframe. T bese shafts T and 8 each connect through a pair of gears 9, 9,with a shaft 10, which in turn connects through a gear-wheel 11 andpinion 12 with the main driving shaft 13, which latter' is here shown asadapted to be driven from a drive pulley 14 through the medium of aclutch 15. The gears 9, 9, between the shafts 10 and the eccentricshafts 7 and S are arranged with one air at one side of the machine andthe ot er pair at the opposite side of the machine in order to properlydistribute the strain on the parts. These gears 9, 9, are preferably ofelliptical form in order to impart to the frame 3 a variable or fast andslow movement, the' saine being set in a manner to give said frame itsslowest movement during the upper part of its stroke and its fastestmovement during the lower part of its stroke; the reason Jfor this being`to provide the maximum amount of time while the frame 3 is up for thepassage of the blank from one position to be operated upon to another,as hereinafter referred to. Vertically arranged posts 1G, 1G, fixed tothe lower frame and engaging the upper frame 3 within openings adjacentits oppostie sides, as shown in Figs. 2 and 3, act to guide said upperframe in its reciprmiating movement.

Mounted upon the frame 1 are the lower members of the slotting andcreasing devices whirrh include two sets of parallel longitudina lyarranged creasing dies 17-17 and 15S-18' and a transversely arrangedslotting and creasing die 19 located at about the center of the machineand intersecting said first-mentioned sets of dies at their adjacentends, as clearly shown in Fig. The die members lT--18 at the left handside of the machine are respectively mounted on heads Z0 and '21 whichhave a fixed connection with the frame 1, while the die members 1718 atthe right hand side of the machine are respectively mounted Qn heads QQand 23 which have an adjustable connection with frame 1, whereby themembers l7--18 may be adjusted laterally with respect to the members17-18 according tothe size and shape of the carton blank to be pro-iduced.

Connected to the upper reciprocatory frame 3 to be operated thereby arethe mvable members of the slotting and creasing devices, which includetwo setsof parallel tion with the lower lonnitniilinally arrangedcreasing 244-24 and 2.551 for eo'operni n the oorresgmnding: lower 'lieslT-Ml :intl 'll--lf to form the ri Innes e", e2, ff', el, of the eartonblank, a tranevorseiyarrangod creasing die ft2 between :saiil i' ot'dies hvll and l1-M25' for coopevation with the lower alie 1*.) nl theCentral par thereof to form the creases if?. u, fri, a?, of the enrtonblnnlnnntl two blotting; knives i and :it opposite emile; ot the the, 26lor ioilieradie il at its opposite. ends to form the slots ffl, :inflf", ot the carton blank. The 'iront :unl rear alie ineinbers fel-25 atthe lt-bbnnfi infie of the niaehine, in similar mann io the peratiremembers l'L-lfi, are nionmoil on liemls 13G nml 3l having a ijwil.eoiineeiion "li i.' u traine 3, ivbile thev iront Lind reni' illen'iefne bers '2-f .i at thevrighhhzind siile of the nnwhiiw, also insiinilnr manner to the en operative niemberff iT lr', nre mounten onheads iii. and 33 whiff'h have :in nllj Stable Connection with theirzzaiie 2 whereby the members 2l-25 muy be, mlinsied lnterzilly withrespert to the members i-H ln oi bends of the lowerveriienily-si:itionai'y members l'T--l8 being' conne exil with bracketnrnis 36E :if snilii traina lijf snitnble fastening mean-1i snel-i asbolts $2? (see Fig. ll), :irnl the supporting: heads of the upperreciproentor), members QJ-V being; eonneoteil Ywith said frame by meansof gibs 35% (see Fig'. in n manner to permit of the reoipi'oentorymovement of the heads xelntive to said frame Kit "the lntter, thusconnected with the adjustable lie sopporting' heads, is engaged by two.entlwise sta tionalv screws 40, 4U, mounted in the, frame Il.` wbiehscrews are each connected by snitable nearing! lf-#422 with an operatingfrank L'l- :it one side oi the machine. l); turning.; this crank in theproper llirer; ian the lies at the right-hand rifle of the niaebinening. be adjusted to re; nate the sli-arf. between the sanne nii-fltlios at the opposite or leftw lian'l silice olE the ninoliinrm lllioupper tzniisvei'sely arranged lie or blade 2G :and the slottini knife:it the left einl thereof both txeilly eonneel'efl to the f1-nine il."l'lio shutting kil le nt the right enil of tho (lie "ZG, however, if;ronnzeteil with the frame in :i manner to pern'iit of its being:nrljnsteil laterally with the ille inem bers {BBL-flo. This ailinstinentof the knife be provide-il for in any snitabie manner. ln the 'presentcase, as most clearly shown in '2l and Q3, said knife is conneriefl tothe creasing die Z6 1n a manner to be moved vertieallvitherewith. and atthe #inging :it one einl 'with the under sirle 0f re snpnwteffl by-prings i8 engaging bolts .il :ittnenml if the lingers, in manner toyieleingly honi the knife in operative en- ;.fizie'e mit inn tlm loire-redge ot' the creasing: @li-:s f :intl permit of its ready adjustmentlonnitnilinnlljv ol thev latter. Lugs 50 on the aflinstnhle bends 3Q andl engaging with the enfle of the bars 47, 47, on the knife serve tovonneot the latter with said heads :unl (rinse, it to be moved with themwhen they :ire shifted to afijnst the position of the adjustable litsrelatively to the stationary (lies as hereinbefore referred to.

The groove 45' in the upper edge of the knife Z8 may be prnvileil in :mysuitable manner. l n the present ease, as most clearly "i 9 it isprovided by forming shown in i .55. a, the knife, of three platesriveted or otherwise seem-ed together with the upper edge of the' middleplate terminating below the upper ezlges of the two outer plates asshown.

The transversely-:irranged slotting and @easing lie 19 is shown in thepresent case (see Fig. 22) as comprising two parallel members 19, 19,supported by die holders 55, 55, fixedly connected to the lower frame l.These (lie members are arranged with a, space or slot therebetween toreceive the creasing die or blade 26 and the slotting knives "7 and 28;the creasing die 26 being of sufficiently less width than the spacebetween said members as to cooperate with thenl to merely Creuse theblanks, as shown in Figi, 22, and the slottingr knives being of sachwidth as to cooperate with said mem.- bers to ent nml slot the blank.Two cutters or cutter :lies 511' and 57 are preferably lofnnieil lwtweenthe rliel members 19', 19', in posit/ion Yior Cooperating 'with theinner 'ranrsverse enrls nit the slotti'ng knives 27 and in cutting: theblanks at the inner or Closed ends of the slots, these cutters togetherwith the cooperating transverse ends of the slotting knives constitutingwhat I term slotend entiers. The ri ttor 56 (see Fig. 10) wliieh cooprntes with the laterally stationary knife, "27 xedly supported in itsposition` but the mittel? :37 which cooperates With the laterallyailjustnfble knife 28 is adjustably supported in its position foradjustment with said knife. ln the present said cutter die 57 isyieldingly supported by a plate 58 through the medi um of interposedsprings 59 (see F ig. 21) in order that it may coperate Withthc knife 28upon thc descent of the latter to cutting position and thereafter bemoved downwardly by the creasing sets arranged slot 63 in the plate 60blade 26 and out of the way ofithe latter upon its passing to creasingposition, as shown in Fig. 22, the arrangement of the parts being suchthat the slotting devices act in advance of the creasing devices. Thecutter-die supporting plate 58 is 'connected With a. slotted plate 60(see Fig. 28) which is slidably supported by the die-holders 55 (seeFigs. 21 and 22) with one end engaging the cutter die 57 within a notchG1 in its nnder side and thereby supporting said die against endwisemovement on '.s supporting Springs 59. The other end of said plate Silengages a notched extension G2 of the adjustable slottin knife 28 so asto connect the cutter-die 5 with said knife whereby it will be movedwith the latter upon any adjustment of the same and so be caused tomaintain its operative relation thereto. The is located immediatelybeneath the knife, 28 mit Waste chips from the blanks to drop downwardlytherethrough.

Having now described the main features of the slotting and creasingdevices. I Iwill next describe the devices for controlling thc passageof the blanks through the machine t0 be acted upon by said slotting andcreasing devices.

At the front end of the machine is located a suitable support ortable--a section of which is indicated at (i5-upon which the blanks orsheets to be operated upon are laced. From this table the operator feedsthe. sheets to the machine, through which they are fed or carried bysuitable feeding devices. Then being so fed through the machine thesheets are guided by suitable gages in order to be properly positionedrelatively to the slotting and. creasing ilevices when acted upon bythem. These gages in the present case are formed in two at oppositesides of the niachine. The set at the left side of the machine,indicated at 66, 67, 68. and Gf) (sce Fig. 3), aref supported inlaterally adjnstable position on stationary table sections by suitableclamping devices, such as the hand-screws 7l, whereby they may be setfor any desired length of slot to be cut by the knife 9.7. The set ofgages at` the right side of the machine, indicated at and 7B.

are supportcdhin a laterally adjustable position on the die supportingheads 2Q and 23 by means to be pescndy described. whereby they may beadjusted relata-rely to ,he opposing gagcs ac"ording to the width of theand is adapted to per-` sheets to bc ted therebetween. These gages 72and 7 3 are preferably set a sufficient distance from the opposing gagesto permit ot" the sheets being freely entered between them and areautomatically operated upon the entry ot' a sheet between them toadvance into engagement with the adjacent edge of the sheet and move thesheet firmly against the oppositely located stationary gages and socause it to be accurately positioned and guided during its passagethrough the machine. The means here shown for so tuviorating the gages72 and 73 comprise two sets of separate but identical devices, oneset-for e'ach gage. I will therefore describe the set employed inconnection with the gage 72, the description of which will be applicableto both mts.

Referring now to Figs. 3 and 11, the gage 72. slidably mounted on thehead 22, is provided with a laterally extending arm 74 adiustablyconnected with ay sleeve 75 by a clamping collar 7 (l, `which saidsleeve is slidably supported in a second sleeve 77, which in turnslidably supported in a bracket 78 rigidly attached to the head 2Q atone end thereof as shown. A spring 79 located on the slecvc 77 with itsends bearing against the bracket 78 and a collar 80 on said sleeve artsto yieldingly hold the latter in Stationary position with a secondcollar 81 thereon in contact with the bracket 78. A second springrlocated on the sleeve 75 with its ends bearing against the collar 76thereon and the end of the sleeve 77, operates to effeet a yieldingconnection of said sleeve 75 and attached gage 72 with the sleeve 77 byholding a collar 84 on the outer end of the sleeve 75 in contact withthe adjacent end of the sleeve 77 or the collar 80 thereon. A lever 85,pivoted at 86 to the bracket 7 8 with its lower end pivotally connectedto the collar 8l., is operated by the engagement therewith of a cam 87on the reciprocatory head 3i? to move the sleeve 77 inwardly or towardthe center of the machine and so advance the connected gage 72 intoengagement with a sheet to move the same against the opposing in themanner hereinbefore referred to, the spring 83 serving as a cushion topermit yielding of the gage relatively tothe positively moved sleeve 77in the event of the gage being arrested by contact with the sheet orotherwise before completion of its full stroke. This advance movement ofthe gage 72 caused h v the engagement of the cam Si with the lever 85upon the passing of the head 32. is timed to take place prior to theknife 28 reaching slotting position in order 'that the sheet will beproperly positioned by en vement with theA opposing gages when the sotting and creasing operations occur. At substantially the completion ofthe down stroke of the head 32 the cam 8T passes below the cooperatingend 85 of the lever 55;.; e'lzeri" :iles to autouuitxcsl.

t. parte i' 't Y;

'u the spriui return the i; their connecten shown in turn up stro g thatthe fum should mss t; without oi'ieruting the suine. und this the rfi ispivoter?. to the hc: 'i :a spring #55u miinezf' to return the rum tonormul operative posi tion following itV movement :ibove salio lever,:is shown in Fifi. l1. The adjustable counwgtiou z erin -lwith the.sleeve 'ibrifire .ri-.terreni tin peru'iits of thc ruige being; mij@iciutirly to the opposing gages :immuun: to the finiti of sheet to beoperatie-l un.. ilu sleeve .Si being split adjacent its cuil to permitoi' its being firmly lumped lo the ,gage iiiin .by the (clamping collier70.

lVlirn the sheets ure teil to the nuichiue by the operutiiu' for paigi:- therethrough betweenllicsicleguges uuscrilml, they' ure engaged byu puir of feed rolls, il() unil 01, mounted ou :t shaft l2 whichjouruuled in the heads 20 und, 2:1 ci the lower freine l and operatedfrom lever 85 to permit i :is showin ng therev." ,li operating u pulley5M ou theI main .living shalt 123 through a beh; f1.3 which runs overguido rolls {if} und il?. These feed rolls :ire preferably 'iornml or"rubber and provided nih' leltdnuul rev; threads (see Fig. 3) to uid indeflect ,5 the sheets toward the stationery gages :it the left isi/.ieof the machinej for the purpose hereinhe fore referred to. The roll imat, im; [p1/5 um@ of the niuihine .supported if: un eiuiwise Stationaryposition on the shult 0:; im'. the roll 91 at the right sidi" of themuchine is suppoited ou @nifl simili irfr enfimse s-,uiju t ment withthe :,uliusiuiiie heed to 'whit-h it is loosely heid by u kcclsfcr:'fii. .X lois' mi key-way connection nur alumni Emu-wu the roll 91 undsimil. le.' endwise adjustment oi' ihr The sheets are fed by th 'feedrelis; 0:) und 91 into the machine between the ugfr uml lower nieu'ilersof the sluiting unil cr f devices until their mirino@ wir" positionbeyond or ut the rear o, versely arranged (lies, where they ure rngagedby further feeding menus by whuh they are fed on through the n'uiffhinc.These last-mentioned feeding means as here shown (see Figs.

l, 1, 3 und 12") comprise two pairs of endless feed belts urrungmlmijner-nt the opposite sides of the machine for engfig ing the sheetsnear their opposite edges. The cooperating upper und lower belts of eachpair, indicated :it 100 :and 101 respon tively, are mounted :it theirfront ends or those ends nearest the center of the machine, on pulleys102 and 103 sui' v supported by the frame 1, and are mounted :it theirop posite or rear ends on driving pulleys 104 Liemers and 10u attachedto shafts 100 and 107 respectivelv, which shafts are journaled in un'auxiliary frame 119 at the rear of the 11min fiume und connected bygearing 108 to be driven i n unison by u driving belt u(not shown)ronnvcted with cone pulleylOS) nu the lower shaft 107. The pulleyscarrying the pair of belts at tinA left side of the machine arelaterally nolrndjustable, but the pulleysv carrying the pair of belts atthe right side of the machine are laterally adjustable in order that theproper relation .said brits to the other puits at that side of theniuffhine muy be maintained upon` any adjustment of them. Thisadjustment of the belts :it the right or adjustable side of the machin-eprovided for by mounting their driving pulleys 10i. und 105 for end wiseuilhustment on their respective shafts, und by mounting the pulleys 102and 103 at their front ends on the laterally adjustble head 23, thelower pulley 103 being mounted on u suitable bearing connected directlywith said head and the upper pulleyv 10'. being mounted on a bearingstud110 attached to the U-slmpe l frame 35 which is also coniwcted to saidhead 23. The upper pulley 102 at the left side of the machine is mountedon u bearing stud 111 car rieti by u bracket 112 uttached directly tothe immo 1 (see Fig. 3). nich of the drivjug belts .iuo und 101 isengaged by a suitable belt tiglitenor, which is here shown (see l1`igs.1' und 12) as comprising a beltengsiging pulley 111 carried by a pivotedarm 115 lmving a pivotally connected screw threaded adjusting rod 11b'adjustably conmated by nuts 117, 117, with a block 118,

mounted on cross-rod of the auxiliary treme 1.10. shown, By adiustingthe po- @tion of the pulley 114 nl" the rod 1.16 sud its engaging nuts117, the tension of the belts may be readily and iu'cumrely adjusted. Inorder to maintain the adjacent runs of the belts in close relation to@zich other, whereby liability of slippage of the sheets between themwill be iinimized :is much it possible, the upper shaft 106 carrying thedriving' pulleys at the rear ends of the belts is supported at itsopposite ends in the journal boxes 120 (see Figs. 12A and 12) which arepivoted at one end on pivots 121 and at their opposite ends :irecngaged'by springs 122 which uct to herir downwardly upon the boxes andhold the upper pulleys in yielding Contact with the lower ones. Withthis construction, the upper belts adjacent their rear ends will adaptthemselves vertically under the action of the springs 122 to sheets ofdifferent thickness. The movement of the driving belts over the table123 supported on the connecting beams 124 between the main and throughthe' medium auxiliary frames, is facilitated by provid-

